The Tools We Call Shinobi
by peppercornshrimp
Summary: Fate is a mistress that walks a fine line between cruelty and compassion. Unknown circumstance has returned Haku to the realm of the living in the form of new life, in the care of the man that killed him no less. Two lives walking a similar path of loyalty and loss, learning what it means to call oneself Shinobi. AU/Reincarnation fic
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Thank you so much for clicking on this story and giving it a chance! And a special thanks to Lazy Shika for Beta'ing.**

 **This is an AU story with a flip-floping timeline between two character POV's, alternating between the post 3rd great shinobi war and post 4th great shinobi war.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

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Lesson 1: Finding a Good Master

HAKU

The cold always seemed to follow me.

Everywhere I went it trailed behind me. Occasionally closing the distance between us, its breath against my neck letting me know it was there. That it would always be with me.

I was four when I realized that the cold didn't seem to bother me the way it did others. Mother, Father and I lived in a secluded village up in the mountains. One particularly bad winter the snow had piled up to the windows putting pressure on the tiny one room house we lived in. Father had told me to go with him because we needed to clear the snow away from the chimney top so we could light the fire. It had taken father and I around 2 hours to clear the snowdrift from the top of the chimney and the roof.

Father caught pneumonia that winter.

I did not.

From that day forward the cold and I developed a sort of kinship, an understanding that one would not exist without the other.

…

The people in the village were nice enough but there was one cardinal rule everyone seemed to live by: don't draw attention to yourself. The civil war had torn the country apart, any suspicious people, anything strange lead to immediate and almost divine retribution. No trial. No jury. No judge.

 _What a strange boy._

 _His skin is always ice cold._

 _There's something wrong with that one._

The whispers seemed to follow me everywhere I went but I ignored them, kept my head down and minded my own business like mother had told me.

However, the whispers did not go away just from my ignoring them. Instead they grew louder until it was dull roar, forming its own entity that shouted me into a corner. It wasn't long until father forbade me from returning to the village.

From then on I never travelled outside of our property line. A prince of a small kingdom; and past the fields surrounding the kingdom's borders the rest of the world lay in ruin.

Behind the high stalks of corn at the corner of our fields were lawless mercenaries. Hired by the neighboring kingdom that wanted our bountiful lands. They lay in wait for the opportune moment to strike but unbeknownst to them these lands were protected by the most fearsome dragon.

With a wingspan that stretched farther than anyone could imagine the dragon flew over our lands keeping an eye on the border of the kingdom. With an almighty breath the dragon brought the cold air into his lungs where it transformed and passed through his scaly lips in one devastating breath. It froze the mercenaries and laid waste to the neighboring kingdom.

The dragon could pull the condensation out of the very air and hold it in his claw. He gave the cold a corporeal form letting it dance in front of him in beautiful ice crystals. He was a kind and good dragon who would protect the kingdom from outsiders.

However, the prince and the dragon failed to see that invaders had already infiltrated their kingdom. The king and queen had fallen victim to a foul bewitchment.

The king's eyes were wide and ravenous. His golden crown spattered and stained with blood. The queen lay crumpled at his feet, her eyes staring at the prince but not seeing.

"Mom...?"

"Dad…?"

The king roared. Like an enraged bull the king charged forward grasping at the princes throat aiming to end his family line and bring the kingdom to ruin.

The dragon flared its nostrils, taking a deep breath; the dragon stopped the king in his tracks with the tip of a beautiful snowflake.

Yet, despite the efforts of the prince and the dragon, the kingdom fell to ruin.

And the prince was lost.

…

My feet seemed to carry me forward without consulting my head. I had nowhere to go, nowhere to claim sovereign.

So I wound up where all lost things did, a part of the archipelago that made up the Village Hidden in the Mist this town was a famous stop for ninja's and merchants alike looking to blow off some steam.

The snow seeped into my shoes from the holes in the toe but I pressed forward walking down the street. Bobbing in between temporary couples and others like myself that had nowhere to go. This place seemed to collect people like me.

I stepped into a shaded alleyway rounding up on the dumpster behind a well visited izakaya. The restaurant almost always had somewhat edible food. I climbed inside not caring about the state my clothes might be in when I exited and began tearing open the black trash bags until I came upon a gold mine. A cold, almost completely intact pork bun, there were some spots of mold on the end but it was not anything I would concern myself with.

Treasure in hand I climbed out of the dumpster when a ferocious growling drew my attention. Snarling and nipping at my heels was a large dog. Its fur was matted in places where it had obviously gotten into a fight. Drool dripped down from its vicious teeth and formed a small puddle in the snow.

I clenched the bun tightly between my hands, wrapping my body around it protectively. I needed this food. I would die without this food.

The dog lunged at me aiming to sink its teeth into my leg when I planted a swift kick to the dog's side.

It let out a sharp whine and crumpled to the ground.

Just as I was about to turn my back, two pups came up beside the mother and nudged her still form.

The pork bun rotted in my hands becoming instantly inedible. I threw the bread to the ground at the mother's feet and walked off resigning myself to finding food elsewhere.

I settled down on a bridge across town and watched as the people walked in front of me. I had long since become invisible. Nothing more than a statistic swallowed up by civil war and violence, and for whatever reason that was okay with me.

The hard wood bit into my exposed skin as I curled into a tight ball, lying on my side. I pressed my face into the slats of the bridge watching the snowfall forming a soft blanket. Content to die here and be swallowed by the falling snow. The one constant in my life, that godfather that always enveloped me when I sought refuge and protection. I would open my arms to him now, the cold would return my embrace as it always had and I would find peace in the solitude.

The blood coagulating at the corner of my irritated nose dripped onto the snow-covered ground staining it red. My stomach lurched at feeling the emptiness. It was almost poetic, lying here dying of hunger even though my soul starved to death years ago.

My eyes started to droop, closing and opening slowly.

A shadow flickered across my vision stepping in front of the moon casting me in darkness.

A deep rumbling laugh came from the shadow, I tilted my head up to catch a glimpse but the light from the moon shining behind him obscured my vision.

"Pathetic little urchin," The deep voice said stepping forward towards me on the bridge. He crouched down to look me in the eye, casting less of a shadow and allowing me to see him.

He was wearing a shinobi uniform, I had seen them once or twice before. His hiate wrapped around his head pushing his hair up and to the side. Strapped to his back was a large sword, almost as tall as he was. Bandages formed a mask concealing most of his tan face except his eyes that bore into mine. Dark, beautiful eyes that held an air of superiority.

"No one wants you huh? Before winter ends you'll die with nothing, not even a dream." He said still crouched. The bandages tightened and relaxed across his mouth as he spoke.

His dark eyes settled into mine and I could not help but smile.

The man grunted, his eyes growing wide. He held my gaze not breaking eye contact.

I leaned forward desperate to move closer to the man so he could hear me. My voice wasn't strong anymore and I needed him to hear me.

"Your eyes are just like mine mister, we're both the same," I whispered. I leaned forward and put my small hands on either side of his face so I could fully appreciate the depths of his irises.

His soul too, had starved to death. I could see it all in his eyes. He lived to cause others pain and lost his soul on the journey. He said before winter ends I would die without a dream but after one look into his eyes, I knew I wasn't the only one.

He let me hold his face between my grubby hands for a few seconds before his larger hands enclosed around my smaller ones and ripped them off. His eyes narrowed as he stood up turning his back to me.

"Come with me and live to serve me or die alone on this bridge. I don't care which." The man scoffed walking towards the end of bridge.

I didn't hesitate for a moment. The strength I thought I had lost began to flood back into me. I would serve this man. I would be his strength. That was my purpose, to help him achieve his dreams.

I chased after him as fast as my slippered feet would carry me and fell in step behind him. Burdened with this new sense of purpose made me feel elated. If I dared, I would just slip my hand into his.

To my surprise, I felt his hand tighten around mine as he pulled me forward to walk at his pace.

"Zabuza." He said gruffly as a way of introduction, "and from now on, your name is Haku."

"Yes, Master Zabuza."

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 **Thank you so much for reading and if it's not too much trouble drop a review!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Thank you for clicking on this story and giving it a chance! And Thank you for Lazy Shika for betaing! Leave a review if it's not to much trouble!**

 **This narrative in the AU takes place after the 4th GSW but before Kakashi becomes the Hokage. I've messed with the time line a little here so forgive me! I just added a cushion of a couple years, nothing else changes.**

 **I obviously don't own Naruto.**

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Shinobi Lesson 2: Treading Lightly

 _SEN_

When unexpected people come into your life one of two things can happen – either that lecherous soul is your untimely demise. Or, through heated breath, this person stirs the fires of your heart. Opening your eyes to something new and inexplicably wonderful.

On any given day you might pass these fated people on the street, at the corner store, or even at your run of the mill, routine mugging…

...

Located on the outskirts of the Land of Fire, Kohino was a godless town where broken men came to die. The dark overcast sky suffocated the sun, keeping her warmth out of reach.

The air smelt of alcohol and shame. The sidewalks were cracked and uneven and the buildings not faring much better. Poor graffiti decorated the walls with gang signs, some I recognized and some I didn't.

The city had gone to sleep. The businesses closed for the day and most of the private lights in the apartments had been turned off.

When you were alone this late the world around you was just – still. Nothing felt better to me. The night sky had a way of putting your problems in perspective. To the stars, we were insignificant. So if you imagined yourself a big star and your problems as a city on a planet light-years away, then they too were insignificant.

"Hey-" I heard a voice call out through the quiet night air pulling me out of my musing.

"Just give us the bag little girl and we'll leave you alone," I heard another voice jeer.

"Get away from me!" The first voice again.

They were close, whoever they were. Judging by their slightly muffled voices they couldn't be more than a block away. Cautiously approaching the alleyway, I peaked my head around the corner.

A lithe little girl was playing tug with an older boy for a backpack. She looked haggard, miserable and far too weak to compete with the older boy's strength. Just when I thought the boy was going to rip the bag out of that girl's hands, the girl let out a piercing scream and gripped her bag tighter.

The boy recoiled as though he had been struck releasing his hold on the bag. The momentary fright allowed the girl to bring the bag in close to her chest.

Undeterred by their loss of the backpack, the trio stalked towards the young girl until her back was pressed up against the alley wall cutting off any escape route that presented itself.

An unfamiliar feeling bubbled and rose to the surface. My hands clenched and unclenched as I felt the small hairs on the back of my neck rise. "Hey you! Ugly! Leave her alone!" I shouted, leaving the safety of my hiding spot and stepping out into the open.

As soon as I said the words I immediately wished I could swallow them back.

The trio halted their advance and turned their attention to me.

"Oh, ho, ho what do we have here?" The one that had been fighting with the girl for the bag had said, opening his arms wide and puffing out his chest as he walked toward me.

Behind him were two more boys, looking similarly dirty and mean. They couldn't be much older than 14, any of them, and I was willing to bet that they got mixed in with the wrong crowd.

"None of your goddamn business, now I suggest you leave that girl alone and return to whatever hole you crawled out of," I spat raising myself up to my full height. There was no way I could back out now. It would be pointless, they'd never let me go after running my mouth off.

My hand reached behind me and grasped an old kunai I kept tucked in the waistband of my pants. Fighting was never a strong suit of mine but as big and dumb as they looked, I might be able to out maneuver them yet.

"Listen you little rat, you can't talk to us that way!" One of the boys shouted.

I gripped the kunai even tighter tensing my arm waiting for him to take one more step in my direction.

"Well…?" He said moving in closer, "I don't know about you boys, but I'd like an apology."

They stepped into my personal space forcing me to take a few steps back, until I was pressed against the cold stone wall.

Being cornered spurred me into action, I lunged forward with the kunai out in front of me. I felt the knife connect with flesh but I didn't stick around to see the damage. Using my forward momentum, I deftly slipped through one of the others legs and out of their reach.

The little girl was huddling against the wall of the alleyway, without a second thought I snatched the front of her shirt and pulled her along as I darted out of the alley.

"Get her!" I heard them shout before they took off after me.

I raced down the street dragging the girl along with me. I was looking around for another alley with a lot of cover. We had to get off the main street to lose them. Making a split second decision I ducked into a side street and pushed the girl into an empty rain barrel.

"Stay here and don't make any noise, I'll lead them away." I said helping the girl into the barrel. She squeezed herself inside still desperately clutching that damn backpack of hers. She looked at me, her eyes wide with worry; I ceased my frantic search for a way out of the street and regarded her for a moment.

It looked like she was about to start crying, her big blue eyes watering and her button nose dripping snot. Her cheeks still chubby with baby fat. It finally dawned on me why I had chosen to save this girl, she reminded me of myself all those years ago. Scared and alone.

Guilt ripped through me for even entertaining the thought of leaving her to fend for herself.

"Hey, they went this way!" I heard those boys shout in the distance, rapidly closing in on us.

"I'll come back for you," I promised squeezing her hand. I placed a cardboard box on top of the barrel before running off in the opposite direction.

The only noise I could hear was the thud my worn out shoes made as the slapped against the cracked asphalt. Bobbing and weaving, I carved my way through alleyways and side streets. The buildings themselves seemed as though they were going to cave in around me.

The gravel crunched under me as I skidded to a hard stop and ducked into an old abandoned shoe factory. The wood floors creaked loudly but I paid it no mind and pressed forward until I heard a sickening crack. The rotted floorboards suddenly gave way.

My body jolted as I hit the ground feet first. I bit down on my bottom lip, my ankle had rolled in a way it probably shouldn't have but if I cried out there was a chance they would hear. I pulled the soft flesh between my teeth as a soft whimper escaped. The cold ground was pressing into my face and body, chilling me to the bone.

"Hey where'd she go?" One of the boys questioned as they entered the factory.

"Little witch, must have gotten away," another one said, "Let's get out of here, its fucking cold."

They were right it was cold, it was only a matter of time before I would end up a frozen corpse. I waited until I couldn't hear any more footsteps before I tried to move but a ripple of pain shot through my whole body. I cried out in agony and clutched my leg, the source of most, if not all of my pain. Spots danced across my eyes and I closed them tightly scolding myself for intervening on that girls behalf.

A gust of wind violently rattled the old building. The factory groaned under the pressure, voicing its complaints about the bitter wind too. I brought my arms in tight to my body in an attempt to still the shivering.

It seemed like I had been trapped in this decrepit building forever, the frigid wind pierced my ears. Even the meager act of rubbing my skin to create friction got to be too tiring for me so I opted to just tuck my hands into my body and lay still. The thought of calling for help fluttered through my mind, but passed as quickly as it came.

"Hey," a small voice called. I opened my eyes and blinked. "Hey, I know you're in here. Where are you?"

"I'm not going to hurt you I just want to thank you," the small voice said stepping further into the factory.

It was the little girl. She had managed to find me. Slowly I pulled myself to a sitting position, grunting and hissing in pain.

"Be careful don't move," I called up to her in warning, "the floor isn't stable."

"So that's what happened," she said aloud, "you fell in a hole,"

"Yeah," I answered dejectedly.

"Well just hold on okay, I'm going to go get help," she said, and then I heard her feet slide on the wood.

"No wait!" I shouted at her.

"It's okay! I'll be right back!" She called back, the pitter-patter of her tiny feet signaling her departure.

"Fat chance..." I muttered foully.

The night settled in and the temperature dropped a full 10 degrees, I knew it was only going to get worse. My eyes grew heavy as the sandman began enticing me with a lovely melody, eventually sliding shut welcoming him with open arms.

"My name is Kakashi, I'm here to help you,"

"What is tha-?" I blinked, agitated that there was a sudden light shining in my eyes. I tried to shake the last vestiges of sleep from my vision and get a look at my surroundings. The moon hung high in the sky, the bright round beacon of hope was reflecting off of a mirrored surface, which shone directly into my eyes.

As soon as I voiced my complaint the light was gone. I sighed relaxing into the warmth of –

My breath hitched in my throat and my entire body tensed up. Rubbing up against my side was cotton and body heat.

"Relax," a deep voice rumbled from above me as we continued to move.

"Where are you taking me?" I croaked. I couldn't relax now. I squirmed in his arms but found I didn't have the strength to put up much of a struggle.

"The orphanage," he replied back easily.

"What?!" I snapped, or tried to snap anyway, it didn't sound very harsh.

"I'm taking you to the orphanage," he said again, slow and patronizing.

"No you are not!" I tried to sound brave and demanding. "Look, Mister, I appreciate your help and everything, but set me in some alleyway, I'll be fine,"

"You hurt your ankle, you are ice cold, and if you stay out here you will die. I am taking you to an orphanage," he said with finality.

"Humph," I grumbled, not having a reply to his well-reasoned argument.

"Just relax we'll be there in no time," Seeing as I didn't really have an option I leaned into his embrace and laid my head on his chest. Soon enough the gentle swaying of his body accompanied by the warmth of his arms calmed me and I was lulled back to sleep.

When I awoke again I was on a futon on the floor of an odd building, my head was gently cradled by a pillow and surprisingly so was my leg. Blinking my eyes to adjust to the dim lighting I gazed around the room, trying to get a feel for where I was. The walls were covered in wooden panels and there was a small table in the corner of the room that held a lit candle but that was it. All in all, the room was startlingly bare.

I felt someone shift and press their way into my side. My eyes widened and I glanced over. The girl, the one those boys were terrorizing and the one who undoubtedly saved my life, was snuggling up to me.

So he brought her along as well.

There were more children than just us though, two or three rows of children were on either side of me snuggly tucked into bedrolls. I spied a small walkway that separated the boys from the girls. Wait, that man he said that he was taking me to an orphanage, so that must be where I am. I remember him laying me down here after mumbling something to the proprietress.

Why did he even care?

I can vaguely recall opening my eyes to look at the person who saved me; he wore a mask that covered most of his face and I could only see his eyes. He had silver hair that spiked up and to the side. There was something else though; he had a headband on. The shiny metal reflected off the light of the moon. He was a ninja of Konoha, a ninja of the Village Hidden in the Leaves. That begged the question of what he was doing out here.

I shook my head trying to remove him from my thoughts and focused on this prison in which I was now incarcerated.

I gently reached over and patted the girl next to me. "Hey," I whispered. "Hey, wake up," I whispered loudly.

"What do you want?" The girl mumbled sourly.

"Wake up, we gotta get out of here," I said pinching her arm.

"What, why?" She said groggily finally pulling herself into a sitting position.

"It'll be trouble if we stay here, I'll explain later. Now come on!" I hoisted myself up, bringing her up with me. As soon as I put weight on my right leg it buckled, intense throbbing surged up and down my whole leg. I looked down and noticed my ankle was bandaged. That masked ninja must have taken care of my injury before he left.

The girl gave me a skeptical look, but got up to follow me anyway. She wrapped both hands around my midsection and forced me to shift most of my weight onto her. I scowled at her determined to walk alone but she didn't let go of me, instead she pulled one of my arms across her shoulders and used the other arm to brace me. We preformed the most cautious three-legged race ever as we tiptoed through the sleeping children.

Never for a moment did she let go of me, she steered me through the people, which forced her to take awkward side steps to unnecessarily accommodate me.

We were almost to the door a mere 10 feet away at best, almost free from this terrible place, when she stumbled and stepped on some little girls hair, causing the girl to scream loudly.

"Shit," I muttered under my breath. I turned back and glared at the girl accusingly. She swallowed hard, unsure of what to do.

We jerked our heads up as the door banged open. I took a step away from the girl untangling myself from her to stand on my own. Bright light from the hallway illuminated the small room and cast an ominous shadow over us.

"What's going on here? There is to be no talking after bedtime." A large woman stood in the doorway, bathed in lamplight. Her greying hair pulled into a tight bun behind her head, her beady eyes were fixed in a glare and her lips pursed into a thin line. Gripped tightly in her left hand was a thick wooden spoon.

"Oh dear!" she exclaimed taking notice of the young girl sitting up sobbing in her bedroll. Ugly, loud crying filled the room as the proprietress made her way over to the girl.

"There, there," she cooed, pulling the young girl into her robust bosom and petting her hair. Slowly the little girl quieted down comforted by the older woman, her tears subsided and the mistress tucked her back into bed.

Once she saw that the young girl would sleep through the night she turned to us, glowering, "What do you two think you are doing out of bed?"

I grabbed the girl's hand and pulled her behind me, shielding her from the proprietress.

I stared up at her with a look of mild defiance in my eyes, "We were only going to the bathroom." I lied quickly.

"Is that so?" The woman asked standing up, her height seeming more threating now than it did a moment ago when she was across the room. "Come along then, the bathroom is this way." She motioned for us to follow her out of the room and towards the back of the house.

She pointed her wooden spoon down a long, dark hallway, "The bathroom is at the end of the hall on your right. It's the only door, you don't need a lamp there's a light in the bathroom."

I couldn't see more than a meter down the hallway before the light tapered off casting the doorway to the bathroom in shadows. The way the darkness enveloped the bathroom seemed so menacing, the sudden feeling that we weren't alone made goosebumps rise on my skin. She didn't really expect us to walk down this unlit hall! The girl next to me gulped audibly, sharing my sentiment.

"We don't really have to go to the bathroom, can we go back to bed now please?" The girl interjected, her voice quiet and polite. I scowled again.

"Oh you don't do you? Then what were you doing out of bed?" The proprietress asked in a knowing voice.

The girl behind me gave me a slight nudge urging me to explain.

I blurted out the first thing that came to my mind, "Exploring! Ah – we were just exploring." I finished softly.

The proprietresses face darkened. The frown returning to her face, "Don't think I don't know your type, I've met a thousand kids just like you and I'm sure I'll meet a thousand more. Troublemakers."

The woman's meaty hand reached out with lightning speed. She snatched my tiny hand and held my palm up–

 _Twack_

"Ow!" I whined quietly. A ferocious sting blossomed across my tender hand as the proprietress smacked me once with her evil wooden spoon. She quickly released me and grabbed the little girl smacking her on the palm of her hand with the horrible implement as well.

"Naughty, naughty girls!" She scolded us in harsh whispers, crouching down to our level so she could glare at us properly. "I will not tolerate rule breakers or liars, now back to bed."

The proprietress ushered us back to our shared bedroll and lifted up the cover hinting for the little girl next to me to crawl in first, then helped me lie down making sure my leg was properly elevated. The proprietress tucked us in and left after giving the room a once over, seeing all her other little one's were where they were supposed to be.

"This is all your fault." The little girl scowled at me after we got settled, tugging the blanket roughly to her side so she had more.

"Well if you hadn't stepped on that girl's hair we would be free right now." I whispered, "you deserved that smack for your screw up." I wrenched the blanket back over to my side.

"Yeah, well you deserved your smack for being a big dummy and falling into a hole in the first place," She jerked on the blanket again, but I held fast to my end this time so we reached a stalemate the blanket spread between us equally.

"Humph." I said rolling over on my back so I didn't have to see her face.

"Humph." She replied. I felt the blanket stretch as she too turned on her side so her back was to me.

After a few minutes of cold silence I heard her whisper, "My name is Ami by the way."

"Sen," I whispered back. A silent truce was made between us, at least for tonight anyway. Not like I was going to be here another night though, tomorrow I'm busting out of this joint.

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